Why We Need Ingredient Transparency in Household Products
What we put in our bodies matters. Get it right, and we live long, healthy lives. Get it wrong, and we end up in the emergency room — or worse.
Research from the Washington Poison Center found that poisoning is the leading cause of injury-related deaths in the United States and the third most common cause of emergency hospitalization. Younger children are the most susceptible to poisoning: 47 percent of calls to U.S. poison control centers are on behalf of children under 6. Nearly one-fourth of those calls are due to ingestion of personal care and household cleaning products.
Anytime we are indoors, we are surrounded by toxic chemicals. Americans spend approximately 90 percent of their time inside, where concentrations of pollutants can be two to five times higher than they would be outdoors. Product safety is not just a problem at home. Workplaces, schools, and public buildings all contain chemicals that can harm us.
While these statistics are alarming, they capture only a small segment of health concerns: the acute health hazards, such as irritations, sickness, and other injuries. The statistics fail to capture the more severe chronic health hazards that toxic chemicals pose, including cancer, neurological damage, and endocrine disruption.
Common laundry detergents, for instance, often contain 1,4-dioxane, a known carcinogenic byproduct not listed on any label. All-purpose cleaners typically contain ammonia, which is linked to chronic bronchitis and asthma.
People might assume the companies behind these products are legally required to disclose all their ingredients, but that is not the case. Household products are under far less scrutiny than food products, and in most states, companies are not legally bound to provide full transparency.
Consumers have a right to know what’s in their products to make informed decisions to protect their health, but most American government agencies (both national and local) don’t require companies to disclose harmful ingredients in household products. The European Union’s REACH and CLP requirements, for instance, are far more comprehensive than most American regulations.
Some American lawmakers are trying, but their efforts have so far been ineffective. In 1976, Congress passed the Toxic Substances Control Act, which allowed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to regulate the introduction of new or existing chemicals. The TSCA was amended in 2016 by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, which made it mandatory for the EPA to evaluate usage of potentially dangerous chemicals but which is extremely limited in scope.
This regulatory lag is unacceptable. Ingredient transparency is not required for consumer products in TSCA reform; so far, no sufficient steps have been taken to rectify the issue. Americans deserve better — and it is up to businesses and local regulators, not national agencies, to make the first move. That’s why my company is committed to ingredient transparency in our ECOS® cleaning products.
Steps Toward Ingredient Transparency
California and New York have implemented new right-to-know laws to give consumers what the national government has not. California’s law requires manufacturers of cleaning products to list all their ingredients online by 2020 and on product labels by 2021.
Laws like these are a step in the right direction. If companies would prefer not to disclose chemicals that cause concern, they can choose to remove them from their products. These rules are different from those currently in place because they require companies to disclose all ingredients, not just those with short-term poisoning dangers. California’s new law even covers fragrance ingredients — a first in the United States.
No effective federal legislation on ingredient transparency is moving through Congress. In fact, one proposed bill, the Accurate Labels Act, would overturn state and local laws requiring ingredient transparency. With this lack of federal leadership on ingredient transparency, state legislators and private businesses are in control.
Without legislation to guide their moves, smart companies are realizing they can assume a position of market leadership by voluntarily disclosing their ingredients. Organizations that move now to help consumers protect their health will gain a competitive advantage in a market that increasingly prioritizes conscious consumerism.
Beyond voluntary disclosure, businesses can use their greater political clout to help effect legal change. By working with federal lobbying groups, companies can show legislators that transparency is a priority — both for businesses and the people they serve.
Consumers have the ultimate power to vote with their wallets and buy products from companies that are willing to voluntarily disclose product ingredients. As more companies move toward transparency, consumers should lend their support to nongovernmental organizations leading the fight to inform consumers and change the laws for the better. Only when businesses and consumers join forces to show their government that ingredient transparency is a real priority will we finally see better regulation.
Kelly Vlahakis-Hanks is the president and CEO of Earth Friendly Products®, maker of ECOS® green cleaning products, including its well-known laundry detergent, as well as more than 200 other environmentally friendly cleaners made with plant-powered ingredients. A U.S.-based company, Earth Friendly Products has twice received the U.S. EPA’s coveted Safer Choice Partner of the Year award. Follow Kelly on Facebook and Twitter.
